-The Hindu Business Line Apart from slowdown in manufacturing and construction, the steep decline in consumption is a big cause for worry Even as the Centre’s big bank mergers detracted the attention briefly from the much-awaited GDP growth numbers for the April-June quarter, the sharp slowdown drew the market’s attention back to the immediate issue at hand. The Central Statics Office (CSO) revealing that the real GDP growth in Q1 of the...

-The Telegraph Investors may be buying stocks again, but fundamental drivers such as expected corporate performance remain unchanged Sentiments matter for economic growth. Optimistic or upbeat sentiments encourage consumers to buy and borrow; businesses, on the other hand, are spurred to plan and invest. But when in reverse gear, downbeat or negative sentiments can hold back spending, restricting activities and stifling growth. For an economy seeking to revive itself, be it India...

In the financial year 2017-18 when tractor sales touched new heights, it was said by many of the NDA (viz. National Democratic Alliance) government supporters that rural demand has revived on account of adequate monsoon rainfall and higher minimum support prices for crops. Many economists and newspaper columnists also denied the existence of any rural distress. An alternative perspective, however, was also presented by rural economists like Dr. Himanshu who teaches...

-The Hindu Production in foundries supplying castings to the automobile industry has dropped considerably In Coimbatore, where a large number of industrial units and foundries are working in the automobile sector, the slump in vehicle demand is impacting several businesses indirectly. A micro industry with just two CNC machines, doing job work, used to earn nearly ?10,000 a week from selling scrap. This income has reduced steeply in the last couple of months...

-Down to Earth The IPCC’s Special Report on Climate Change and Land says land-based carbon sinks are not limitless The carbon cycle is classically described in terms of ‘sources’ and ‘sinks’ of emissions. The electricity sector, which converts fossil fuels into light and heat, is a source (as are most human activities since the dawn of the industrial age). Identifying sinks is trickier. We know that, as a general principle, more forest cover...